Video: Riders go head-to-head on portable pump track for high-octane racing

Here’s a neat concept that sees cyclists from different disciplines compete against each other on a portable pump track that can be moved from venue to venue.

The action, from a couple of weeks ago, is from the opening round of the Pump Battle Series 2016, held in De Radstake at Heelweg in the Netherlands.

The format reflects a trend we've been seeing more and more of in recent years - pop-up events using infrastructure that can easily be dismantled then taken elsewhere - think Street Velodrome, or the Red Bull Mini Drome.

Highlights video Radon Pump Battle World Series #1 from Radon Factory Enduro Team on Vimeo.

Billed as the U-Turn Edition due to the design of the course, riders were allowed to use chains – normally banned – in the season opener.

Two identical 100 metre tracks complete with bumps and turns allowed the 32 qualifiers in each category to race each other in pairs.

Among the riders competing was 2013 four-cross world champion Joost Wichman, of Radon Factory Racing Team.

More information should be available on the Pump Battle Series Facebook page, as well as on its website – both of those are down at the time of writing, however.

In the meantime, here’s the teaser video for the 2016 competition.